Mismatch
by akaiihana
Summary: What happens when six students get assigned on a mission to save someone?
1. Chapter 1

**Mismatch**

**by akaiihana**

Disclaimer: I don't own anything of Gakuen Alice/Alice Academy…wish I did, though!

**Mismatch, Chapter One**

A girl with hazel hair ran down the corridor to her classroom from her dormitory room. She said, "Good morning!" to everyone inside and let out and excited squeal at seeing her best friend Hotaru, a raven-haired emotionless girl and immediately skipped over to hug her.

"Hotaru-chaaaan!!"

There was a loud bang as Mikan crashed into the other side of the room after getting hit by Hotaru's Baka-Gun yet again.

"Hotaru-chan! Do you have to do that to me every morning?!" Mikan asked.

"You know how I feel about your hugging me. When you learn that you are not supposed to hug me, I will stop hitting you with my Baka-Gun." Hotaru replied tonelessly.

"If you say so," Mikan sighed. "Oh, good morning Ruka-kun!" and beamed at another good friend of hers. "Oh, and, good morning Yuu-kun!"

"Good morning…" Ruka yawned to hide the blush that had appeared on his face.

The door suddenly slammed open. A red-eyed boy entered and glared at everyone in the classroom. Undaunted, Mikan greeted Natsume with a cheery, "Good morning, Natsume-san!"

"Hmph." Natsume turned away from her and sat down at his desk.

Mikan was a little hurt by this. She had tried to be nice to Natsume, and he had been so rude to her. She wished that even sometimes, Natsume would smile at her and return the simple yet cheering greeting. _Wait a minute, _she thought, _why am I even worried whether Natsume smiles at me or not? Why would I care if he says good morning? That's his personality, to shut everyone out…so why do I feel hurt, even just a little bit?_

Mikan's train of thought was interrupted by Hotaru.

"Mikan-chan, are you alright? Are you sick? You look pale."

"Don't worry about me, I'm perfectly fine, Hotaru. But thanks for the concern." Mikan smiled at her best friend. Even though Hotaru could seem expressionless and uncaring on the outside, Mikan knew that Hotaru wasn't really like that. She knew perfectly well that it was just the way Hotaru was and, well, she just liked Hotaru for who she was. And she knew that Hotaru cared for her as well, though she didn't show it.

**Natsume's POV**

Not again. Why do I have to do this every morning? Slam the door open, glare at everyone, ignore Mikan's greeting and sit down. No wonder everyone keeps away from me. They think I'm some kind of freak loner who'd kill them if they come too close. Well I can't really blame them for thinking that. But they better not try messing with me, or I just might really kill them.

Who do I think I'm kidding? This is exactly why everyone stays away from me…

-**end of POV**-

Just then, Mr. Narumi came into the room. The rest of the class settled down since their first lesson of the day was about to start.

"Good morning, class." Mr. Narumi said. "I want to tell you about your next project." The class groaned, and he smiled. "Now, now, this isn't a regular project. In each group, there will be two boys and two girls. You will each be given a task and you will be graded according to how well you act in it."

"Task?" Mikan asked.

"Yes, each group will be assigned a random task. In order that you will not find it too easy, the tasks will not concentrate totally on one subject. There will be other topics as well." Mr. Narumi answered. "Now, group yourselves! I will give you ten minutes to group yourselves, and then I will call each group one by one and assign your task."

The class was immediately thrown into action. Here and there, you could see different members of the class clustered around one another. Predictably, Natsume was still alone. Mikan approached Hotaru with a smile.

"Hey Hotaru-chan, who do you think should be our group mates?"

"I did not say anything about being group mates, but since you are here, we might as well be." Hotaru decided that there would be an unspoken agreement that they would always be group mates when group mates were required to be chosen. "What about Ruka-kun and Natsume-san?"

Mikan turned to look at them. Like herself and Hotaru, Ruka was looking around the classroom for two more girls to be group mates with. Expectedly, Natsume looked bored.

Mikan wasn't too happy about Hotaru's suggestion, but no one else had a group that still needed a pair of girls.

"Oh, alright, but who's to say that they'll want to be in the same group as me? Especially since it's _Natsume-san_…" Mikan sighed.

"We have no other choice. We must content ourselves with who is left. Even Yuu-kun has a group…" Hotaru observed. "Besides, there is no need for us to approach them, seeing as they decided to ask us first." And indeed, Ruka was coming over to the two girls.

As Ruka came closer, Mikan noticed that he had an odd expression. And he was blushing too. Naïve Mikan couldn't think what it meant, although to other people, it would have been quite obvious.

"H-hey, would you two mind being our group mates? There's no one else, you see…" Ruka asked quietly, not meeting their eyes.

"That'll be great!" Mikan excitedly answered. "But…does Natsume-san mind?"

"Mikan-chan, whether he minds or not, we are now his group mates and he can't do anything about it." Hotaru said in a detached voice.

"Okay, then. That's good." Mikan said, relieved.

"Class, settle down now." Mr. Narumi said. The class sat down in their seats. "I would like each of you to meet with the rest of your group and wait **quietly **for me to assign you your task. Remember, the higher your noise level, the harder it will be!"

The class obeyed. Natsume, Ruka, Mikan and Hotaru all went to a corner of the classroom and sat down there. Mr. Narumi started going around the room. The way he was going, it seemed that they would be the last ones to get their task.

"Don't make any noise, Polka Dots, or else our task will be more difficult." Natsume said to Mikan. "Hey, why don't you just call me by my proper name, you pervert!" Mikan retorted.

"Shut up, idiot!"

"You're the one who started it, idiot!"

"Stop it, you two! You sound like lovers who are quarreling." Hotaru remarked.

"Who are you calling lovers?" Natsume glared at Hotaru, though a barely noticeable blush had appeared on his cheeks. Hotaru stared right back at him.

"Hmph." Natsume broke the staring match.

Hotaru smiled just a very little bit. All through this, Ruka didn't say a word. His bangs were covering his face and a blush was visible on his face.

Mr. Narumi finally reached their group. He was holding a big bunch of paper and some cards.

"So, the group members are…Hotaru-san, Mikan-san, Natsume-san and Ruka-san." he said, scribbling down their names on a piece of paper. "Alright then, you are group number three. Your task will be…" he chose a card from the ones he was holding. His eyes widened. He read what it said twice and wordlessly handed it to Natsume.

Natsume took the card and started reading it. "You have been assigned to the Academy's mission area. You have now been recruited to take on and fulfill certain missions. This mission is…" Natsume stopped and cleared his throat. "To…a rescue mission."

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**A/N: **Sorry about the cliffhanger! Just _why_ a rescue mission is so important will be cleared in the next chapter! Hope you enjoyed, read and review! Ja!

**locked-away rainbow**


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own anything of Gakuen Alice/Alice Academy. It is owned by the great mangaka Higuchi Tachibana.

**Mismatch, Chapter Two**

"A rescue mission?!" Mikan said in shock. "But we're only students! How could we possibly take on whatever it is that this mission is about?"

"Obviously, Polka Dots, we're going to be graded on how well we complete the mission." Natsume said sarcastically.

"Pervert." Mikan muttered.

"But Mikan-san has a point. How could we take on a mission like this? Like she said, we're only students. There's no way we're going to be able to complete this mission unless…well, unless they gave us special training or something." Ruka said.

"Yes…I think they will. The Academy won't let students die for a project." Hotaru said calmly. "Although we will be the only ones taking on a project like this, I think…"

"Don't you think this is strange?" Mikan blurted out. "This doesn't seem like any project we've ever had before! Don't you think this has something to do with, well…_working for the Academy?_" She looked meaningfully at Natsume.

**Flashback – Natsume's POV**

What? What am I doing here? Why am I tied up like this?

I saw two girls beside me. One was Sumire and…Mikan? What the heck are they doing here? I started to move and I tried to burn the ropes off with my Alice. But for some reason, it was really hard and I lost a lot of energy just trying.

"Oh Sumire-san, Natsume-san's awake!" Mikan whispered.

"Oh Natsume-san, we've been so worried about you!"

What are you two doing here?

"We saw you getting kidnapped by Ryo-san so we followed you out of the Academy." Mikan whispered.

"Only this idiot got us caught by the same people who kidnapped you!" Sumire interrupted. Jeez, that girl can get really annoying sometimes…

Hey little girl…

"Don't call me that! I've got a name, you know!" Mikan said.

Mikan-san…what are you wearing those panda ears for? Are you cold or something?

"Oh…these are panda transmission ears!" Mikan exclaimed. "I can contact Hotaru with these!"

"Stupid, did you only think of that now?" Sumire sniffed.

Mikan didn't answer. Smart girl. _Wait, where did __**that **__come from?! _Well anyway, she was trying to contact Hotaru, I guess. After a while, she was whispering into the transmission's mouthpiece. I couldn't hear much, although I did hear Narumi-sensei telling me to use a flame to burn the ropes tying me, but no too strong so the barrier Alice of one of Ryo-san's henchmen wouldn't be disturbed. So I did, but it was hard. After I untied Mikan's ropes, I was tired out.

It was worthless anyway. Ryo-san found us. After he did, he grabbed the transmission and started talking to Narumi-sensei. That conversation revealed a lot of stuff I had no idea about before. Such as the fact that Narumi-sensei and Ryo-san knew each other since way back, and that the Academy was only training students for their own personal use. _That _I wasn't sure. If the Academy was or not, I couldn't just believe it. Ryo-san was an anti-Academy after all, so he could believe anything just so that it's against the Academy.

-**end of flashback**-

_Jeez, don't remind me, _Natsume thought to himself.

"Hey, you guys. Have you noticed that this rescue mission we've been assigned to doesn't have any details? I mean, like, who are we supposed to rescue? And…why _us_?" Ruka asked the others.

His question was unanswered. An odd silence fell over them. But Ruka could tell that no one knew the answer, therefore they couldn't say anything. Besides, they were all thinking too hard.

Suddenly the door behind them opened. It was Mr. Jinno, and he said, "Narumi-kun, can I excuse you for a bit?"

Mr. Narumi relaxed. "Good, I was about to look for you too. We need to talk about something."

The two teachers exited the classroom. Mikan wondered what they were talking about. She didn't have to wonder too long, though. Pretty soon, they could hear shouting from the behind the door, and since they were in front of it, they could hear perfectly well what they were shouting about.

"How could you assign them such a difficult mission? They're only kids, Jinno-kun!" Mr. Narumi shouted.

"They can handle it. Their group has all four types of Alices and they will support each other. They can handle it perfectly well, Narumi-kun. You're overreacting." Mr. Jinno calmly replied.

Mr. Narumi sighed. "Well, it's your fault if anything happens to them."

"Besides, they're not going to be alone. Some older students are going with them as well. Did you expect them to be alone? I'm not that foolhardy." Mr. Jinno told him.

"Oh, alright. But I won't be held responsible for anything that happens. Especially if anything happens to…Sakura-san and Hyuuga-san." Mr. Narumi said.

"Hmph. You don't have anything to worry about. They have powers they have yet to discover. But those two…yes, you're right. I'll make sure their older companions are dependable. Sakura-san and Hyuuga-san will watch out for each other. That's sibling love, after all. They'll find it in their deepest instincts to defend one another in their times of need." Mr. Jinno said.

The four students slowly turned their heads to look at each other. Then as one, their jaws dropped open, with the exception of Hotaru, who settled for frowning.

"_**Sibling love?!**_"

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**A/N: **Hope you enjoyed the new chapter! Tell me if you liked the twist to the story! I'll explain further in the next chapter. **Review to tell me about your opinion, okay? **See you in the next chapter!

By the way, I'll be inserting some new characters in the story. If you can give me any ideas on the character, I'll be inserting it in the story, okay? Include it in your reviews! You can even make yourself into and anime/manga character of Gakuen Alice, then you'll be in the story! Don't you like that?

I'm looking forward to the reviews! By the way, thanks to chocobars, diana05, kryuzei, and dbzgtfan2004 for being my first four reviewers! Thanks very much, they're greatly appreciated! Keep reading, okay? Ja!

**akaiihana**


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own anything of Gakuen Alice/Alice Academy. It is owned by the great mangaka Higuchi Tachibana.

**Mismatch, Chapter Three**

Mikan was astounded. _Did I hear…what I thought I heard? Then that means…Natsume-san is my __**brother?!**__ How could that be possible! I never had any siblings…_

Natsume was in an equal state of shock. _How the heck did Polka Dots become my __**sister?!**_

Hotaru was watching them intently. She looked at Ruka, whose eyes had widened. Suddenly, Mikan gave a little sigh and fainted, right into Ruka's arms. Ruka startled himself by catching her right in time. He cradled Mikan in his arms. Hotaru raised her eyebrows at him. He immediately blushed.

"What, did you expect me to just let her fall on the floor?" Ruka defensively asked.

"No, it's just the way you caught her, that's all." Hotaru answered. Her face had returned to its normal expressionless state.

Ruka opened his mouth to speak, but hesitated to say what he was thinking. He instead turned to look at Natsume. He looked as though he was in a different world.

"Natsume-kun? Are you…feeling okay?" Ruka timidly asked.

"Don't bother asking him now. Ask him when he's gotten over the shock. Besides, have you even considered the fact that we misunderstood?" Hotaru pointed out.

Ruka looked down at Mikan, who sill hadn't woken up. "Well, yeah. It's virtually impossible for those two to be siblings. I mean, they're nothing alike!"

"Well, no, they aren't. But I guess we shouldn't jump to conclusions…" Hotaru's voice trailed away as she started thinking again.

**Natsume's POV**

What? She _can't _be my sibling…we just heard Jinno-sensei wrong! Yeah, that's it…

_That's sibling love, after all._

Get out of my head!

_That's sibling love, after all._

Stop it!

…_sibling love…_

No…

…_sibling…_

-**end of POV**-

Natsume was unaware that he was already shouting. Luckily, the class was noisy enough so that no one could hear him except Hotaru and Ruka.

"Natsume-kun? Natsume-kun, are you okay?!" Ruka was shaking Natsume.

Oddly enough, Natsume was not reacting to the shaking that Ruka was giving him. His eyes were staring right through him. He turned his head slowly to stare at Mikan.

Right then, Mr. Narumi entered the room again. He was breathing hard, as though he had just run a long way, and he looked angry.

"Okay, class. I'll give you the rest of the period to discuss your class project. I need to go talk to the other teachers." Mr. Narumi announced.

This, obviously, was greeted by happy yells by the rest of the class. Mr. Narumi left, slamming the door behind him as he went. No one took notice of this except Ruka and Hotaru.

"Narumi-sensei really seems to have a bad temper today." Ruka said quietly.

"Yes, he is. I suppose we should leave them alone for a while…" Hotaru replied.

Natsume abruptly stood up to leave. Just when his hand was on the door, he looked back at Ruka and Hotaru.

"If anything about this gets out, I'll know who it came from. And that person will be dead." Natsume said in a lethal tone.

A few minutes after Natsume left, Mikan finally woke up. She immediately sat up and blushed after waking up in Ruka's arms. Suddenly, everything that had just happened came back to her. She buried her head in her arms.

"Oh come on, you never know, we might have misunderstood!" Ruka comforted her.

"That's right, Mikan-chan. Jinno-sensei may have meant it as a metaphor!" Hotaru agreed.

"Thanks very much, guys. But I need some time to…think about it, I guess. But I really appreciate your concern." Mikan smiled tiredly at them.

"Alright, I understand." Hotaru stood and motioned Ruka to do the same.

After some time, Mikan stood as well and sat back down at her seat. The rest of the day was a blur to her. She went through it as best as she could, but she really couldn't understand what was going on around her. Her whole world had been turned upside down. Hotaru and Ruka understood the mental turmoil she was going through and wisely left her alone for the time being.

At dismissal time, she wandered out to the huge cherry blossom tree in the garden and sat down underneath it. Her brown eyes roved over the school and its grounds, but she was not taking in any of it. She was just too distracted.

Suddenly her eyes focused on someone in front of her. They met the eyes of that person. They were the hypnotizing crimson eyes of Hyuuga Natsume.

To her astonishment, he sat down beside her, not breaking their gaze. Their eyes were locked on each other's, and neither of the two could look away. Natsume realized what he was doing and hastily looked down, and his bangs covered his eyes, but not before Mikan could notice the light blush that had stained his cheeks. She blushed as well, and looked at the school buildings again.

"We need to talk…Mikan-san."

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**A/N: **Hope you enjoyed the new chapter! I know it's a bit short, but I promise to make it longer next time! Practically al of the reviews seemed that no one wanted Natsume and Mikan to become siblings. So I may change the story. (Yes, I was going to make them siblings!) I still might, but in the meantime, I'll think about it. Tell me if you want me to or not in your reviews!

And also, thanks very much to **kryuzei, ****PBCNX-MAN****, kurobarachi, simplebutspecial, ****SasuNaru-Love**and**Michiyo-chan and Ayumi-chan **for your reviews! I hope they keep coming! Help me improve the story! And most people seem to have noticed that Jinno-sensei isn't exactly the type to say "sibling love", but I figured it would make it sound more incredible. Kidding, lol.

I accept flames, by the way. Haha, but I pretty much have the rest of the story planned out. I still need your opinion whether you want Natsume and Mikan become siblings or something else. If you want them to become siblings, the story will be way better! Whatever happens, I'll make it all work out in the end, I promise! Anyway, it all depends on you, readers! **Review!**

**akaiihana**


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own anything of Gakuen Alice/Alice Academy. It is owned by the great manga-ka Higuchi Tachibana.

**Mismatch, Chapter Four**

**Mikan's POV**

Tell me I didn't just see Natsume-san sit down beside me. This day just can't get any weirder.

I thought that he would _hate me. Hate me for being his sister._ He already dislikes me…how much more would he be able to take?

This feels really bizarre. Natsume-san is sitting beside me. What the heck does he want to talk about anyway? The fact that we're siblings? I have a feeling he's going to tell me about something else…

"Mikan-san…look, I know we heard Jinno-sensei and Narumi-sensei say the words…_sibling love._"

It sounds like he's having a hard time saying it. _I knew it! He hates me, that's why he can't say it!_

"But we're not even sure if we _are _siblings or not. I just came here to let you know that…well, if we really are siblings, you might want to know that…I've gotten used to the idea and…I guess I don't really mind."

**Natsume's POV**

I finally told her.

Wow, this is unlike her. She isn't reacting…at all. Is the idea we're siblings that horrible to her that she can't even speak? I did tell her how I really felt about this brother-sister business. It's the truth! Now I know the reason for my feeling so overprotective towards her, why I don't want anyone to hurt her.

It's because she's my sister.

"Natsume-san, if you don't mind, I guess…I don't mind either."

She finally said it. And she smiled at me. Smiled like practically nothing had happened at all. I was so relieved that she didn't care that we were brother and sister that I reached out my arms to her before I could even think of what I just did.

To my surprise, tears filled her eyes and she jumped right into my arms. She started crying right on my shoulder.

But what surprised me even more was the fact that I didn't care. I wasn't disgusted that she was crying on me. In fact, I felt good that I was hugging her, and it was the right thing to do to calm her down.

"You can stop crying, Mikan-san."

She finally realized what she was doing. "I'm so sorry Natsume-san! I didn't realize what I was doing, I thought you meant for me to hug you, I thought - "

I cut her off. I did mean for you to hug me. And call me Natsume-kun from now on, okay?

Her eyes widened. "Okay, but you have to stop calling me Polka Dots and start calling me by my proper name, Mikan! And…call me Mikan-chan okay?..._Onii-chan_…"

It was my eyes' turn to widen. _Did I just hear her call me onii-chan?!_

Oddly enough, it sounded okay. I could get used to this.

"Don't call me onii-chan. I don't want people to find out. They'll be bugging us night and day and we'll never get another peaceful moment, okay?"

"Oh, okay. I'll just call you Natsume-kun!" she smiled, no, _grinned_, at me.

Life's never going to be the same again, that's for sure.

-**end of POVs**-

"I can't believe you'd still do a thing like this, Imai-san, even after everything they've gone through!" Ruka complained to Hotaru, who was recording the whole thing on her trusty camera.

"Relax. I'm not going to sell it. I did promise that I wouldn't ever tell anyone unless they say I can. When they do say I can, then I'll sell it and make money." Hotaru said to him.

"Well, that's basically the same thing!" Ruka moaned.

"It is not. It'll be legal because I'll have their permission." Hotaru replied.

"Imai-san…"

"Keep it down, they're coming here."

"You weren't videotaping us, were you, Hotaru-chan?" Mikan said to her best friend. Apparently, Mikan and Natsume had gotten there in the time it took for them to quiet.

"Yes, in fact I was."

"Oh Hotaru, please don't sell that, please don't! We aren't even sure if what we heard was true!" Mikan pleaded. "Right, Natsume-kun?"

"Yeah, whatever." Natsume said.

"So it's Natsume-_kun _now, is it?" Hotaru remarked.

"What's wrong?" Mikan asked, innocently unconscious to what Hotaru was implying.

"Oh, nothing."

"Anyway, we should get back, it's nearly time for dinner. Besides, won't Yuu be looking for you two?" Ruka directed his question at Hotaru and Mikan.

"Yes, I suppose he is. We've been with you two most of this day, after all." Hotaru said tonelessly.

"Poor Yuu! We really should get back now, shouldn't we?" Mikan jumped up and started tugging on Hotaru's hand. "Let's go, Hotaru-chan!"

"I'm coming, Mikan-chan, there's no need for you to pull me like that." Hotaru shook her off.

"Let's go, Ruka-kun." Natsume said, and walked off.

"Hey, wait up!" Ruka yelled. "See ya, Imai-san and Mikan-san!"

"Bye!" Mikan cheerfully waved at the two boys. To her great surprise, Natsume looked back just a little bit and gave her a small smile. Yes, actually _smiled_. Mikan smiled back and waved to Ruka. Ruka waved back. Mikan turned back to Hotaru feeling, if possible, even more cheerful.

"So what happened to you two, anyway? I couldn't hear much because you were too far away, but I did see you hugging Hyuuga-san." Hotaru asked.

"Yeah, I did. It really shocked me, because usually he's all standoffish. I was surprised he even sat down beside me." Mikan remarked. "He said that if I really was his sister, he didn't mind. It was really out-of-character for him, I guess."

"Well, at least nothing bad happened." Hotaru said. "It's okay with you too? That he's your brother, I mean."

"Yeah, it's okay. I mean, we might not even be _related. _I think we're all jumping to conclusions, but in case we are, that's okay with me."

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**A/N **Not many people would want Natsume and Mikan to be siblings. Hmm…I guess I'll think about that. Kidding! I'll do my best to fix the story!

Thanks to **aya09, glenda23, **and especially **kryuzei**! Thanks very much for reading!

Hope the reviews keep coming!

**akaiihana**


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own anything of Gakuen Alice/Alice Academy. It is owned by the great manga-ka Higuchi Tachibana.

**Mismatch, Chapter Five**

Mikan went to sleep that night with mixed feelings. She really had no idea what to think. Everything was just one big mess.

"Well, at least I know that Natsume-kun's okay with it…" Mikan yawned and fell asleep. She was exhausted.

The next morning, she woke up unusually early. But everything seemed to be blurry again. She was the first person in her classroom for the first time. No one was there yet, so Mikan just sat down by herself in her seat. For some reason, she felt really down about something that she couldn't remember. _It's also the reason why I woke up so early… _she thought to herself. _I must have had a dream or something, but what could it be?!_

Mikan sat there for a long time, thinking about her dream. She couldn't remember what it was, but she knew that it was something really important.

The door abruptly banged open. But Mikan didn't even notice it. She was staring out the window. It was Natsume, and for some strange reason, he was early too! But when he saw Mikan was the only person there, he relaxed and shut the door quietly. He looked back at Mikan and his scarlet eyes widened. Mikan still hadn't seen him, because she was still staring out the window, and her eyes were glassy.

There were tears cascading down her face.

Natsume instantly went to her. But his personality still kept him from touching her, or doing any of the things that people do to comfort each other.

"Mikan-chan, what's wrong with you? Did you get hurt?"

Mikan wasn't reacting to Natsume. Her eyes were glazed over.

"Mikan! Mikan!"

Mikan slowly turned her head to face Natsume, but the tears were still running down her cheeks and her eyes were still glassy.

_"I…did…something…I…can't remember…"_

She grabbed Natsume by the shoulders. Her hands were shaking badly.

_"What…what am I going to do? Help…me…"_

"Mikan-chan, what's wrong! It's okay, relax!" He held on to Mikan's hands. "Tell me what's wrong! Oh no, maybe I should go get help if you're sick…" he said, wildly looking around for someone.

"No, please, don't leave me! Natsume-kun…I'm sorry…what's wrong with me? Why am I crying?" Mikan's eyes finally returned to normal and they stared into Natsume's.

Natsume sighed with relief. "I'm glad you're okay. What happened to you, anyway?"

"I really don't know. One minute I was here, and the next…" Mikan gestured hopelessly. "I have no idea what came over me all of a sudden!" She laid her head down on her desk.

"I think everything's just catching up on you. You know, all the surprises and stuff." Natsume said.

Mikan gave him a teary-eyed smile. "Thanks. Just…don't tell anyone, please? Especially not Yuu or Ruka or Hotaru…they'll start worrying and I'm just going to be a burden on them…"

"You know what, _you_ should be the one to relax. If this keeps up, you're going to get sick." Natsume said.

"I will. Something's just really bothering me, but for some reason, I just can't remember what it is!" Mikan said, frustrated. "Thanks for the concern anyway. I just need some more time to think. It could just be paranoia." She smiled at Natsume, and he smiled back. But her smile wasn't the same as usual.

Natsume shook the feeling off. _She's just exhausted. I'll just let her be for now._

Natsume went to his seat and took out his shounen manga. But before he could even start reading, a lot more of their classmates came inside. Soon, Hotaru and Yuu came too. However, Mikan was too exhausted to try hugging her best friend like she usually did.

Mikan only lifted her head for a moment to say, "Good morning, Hotaru-chan. Good morning, Yuu-kun…" then her head fell back down on the desk on top of her arms.

"What's wrong, Mikan-san?" Yuu asked, concerned. He had already sensed that something was wrong.

"There's nothing wrong with her, she just woke up too early, that's all." Hotaru said calmly. "She didn't even try to hug me today because she's tired from lack of sleep."

"That's right! You're really good, Hotaru-chan." Mikan smiled weakly.

Although it didn't look like it, Hotaru was worried as well. She already knew that part of the reason was lack of sleep, but Mikan wasn't even smiling that much. But she knew that Mikan wouldn't want Hotaru to be worried about her, so she acted like she wasn't.

For some reason, Mikan seemed to be tired the whole day. She didn't even have any appetite so she missed lunch. Yuu was trying to get her to eat something, but Mikan didn't want to. She just said that she needed some sleep because she didn't get any sleep the night before.

That afternoon after classes, she sat down under the cherry blossom tree again. After a few minutes, Ruka knelt down to face her.

"Sakura-san…do you mind if I sit down beside you?" It was a mark of his deep concern for Mikan that he didn't even blush like he normally would. Not that Mikan even noticed, of course. She just nodded in reply.

"Hey Sakura-san. Are you okay? You've been acting really weirdly today. Are you feeling sick or something?" Ruka asked her in concern.

"I'm fine, thanks. I just didn't get much sleep last night." Mikan smiled a little at him.

Ruka frowned. "But, you don't seem to have as much energy as usual…even on the days when you don't sleep much, you're still really active during the day."

"Really, Ruka-san, you don't need to worry. I'm fine, believe me."

"Alright. But if you have any problems, you can tell me, okay? I'm your friend." Ruka reassured her.

"Thanks a lot. You're a really good friend." Mikan smiled at him, and this time it was a genuine Mikan smile.

Ruka smiled back. "That's fine."

He stood up to leave, but to his surprise, Mikan pulled him back down by the hand. He sat back down beside her, blushing. To his even greater surprise, Mikan was still holding his hand. Then she took hold of his other hand as well.

"Ruka-san, now that we're friends, I'd like you to call me Mikan-chan now, okay?" she beamed at him.

"Oh, okay. Then you have to call me…Ruka-kun."

"Ruka-kun, is there something wrong?" Mikan frowned. Ruka wasn't meeting her eyes at all. His bangs were covering his face.

"I'm fine." He was blushing so hard that his face was as red as a tomato. "I need to go now." He didn't really have to. He just needed a way to leave before he could spill his feelings for her.

"Oh, okay. Thanks for the concern, really." Mikan was still holding one of his hands. "But…do you really have to go?" She laid her head down on his shoulder.

"Please don't go yet…"

"W-what?!" Ruka said, shocked. He looked down, only to see Mikan leaning on his shoulder. His heart felt like it was about to burst. But he controlled himself.

"Alright, I won't." Ruka smiled at her, but his heart was pumping at the rate of a racecar competing at top speed. He slowly and tentatively placed his arm around her.

"Thanks a lot…for being there for…me…" Mikan said slowly.

When Ruka looked at her, she was asleep.

"Mikan-chan…I love you."

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**A/N: **Hey, readers! Sorry for the delay. I'd already finished this ages ago, but our computer's internet is malfunctioning so I've only been able to update this now. Thanks for waiting anyway! Thanks to **ayu7, hend, kryuzei, dragonslay10, Strawberry Luv, SasuNaru-Love, glenda23, madoka jieshika, and nArUe008 **for all your reviews!

Keep reading! Ja!

**akaiihana**


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I don't own anything of Gakuen Alice/Alice Academy. It is owned by the great manga-ka Higuchi Tachibana.

**Mismatch, Chapter Six**

Ruka couldn't bear to stop the moment. It felt so peaceful…and he was with the one he loved most in the world.

However, he also knew that they would have to leave soon, or both of them would catch a cold. So he tried waking Mikan up.

"Mikan, Mikan…" he shook her gently. "Mikan-chan, please wake up."

She wouldn't wake up. Her only reaction was to cuddle even closer to Ruka.

"_Mmmm…not yet…5 more…minutes…"_

"Huh?!" Ruka gasped.

**Ruka's POV**

What's happening? I know she's asleep, but…I know that I'll never get another chance like this again…but I really shouldn't…anyway, we need to go now! What am I going to do?!

It feels really hot all of a sudden.

Mikan-chan, you gotta wake up…

Geez, this feels so weird. I'm sure my face is really red by now…good thing no one's around to see it.

Mikan-chan, wake up. Wake up!

Maybe she really hasn't gotten any sleep lately. Maybe I should carry her. But it'll look too suspicious if I carry her to her room…the teachers might even think that I made her drunk and now I'm…

Stop thinking about that, Ruka! Get a hold of yourself!

Maybe I should get help…probably Imai-san. Where is she, anyway?

**-end of POV-**

"I'm right here." A voice behind the tree said.

"AAAAAHHHH!!" Ruka yelled. Then the owner of the voice stepped out to face him.

"Imai-san, you nearly gave me a heart attack!!!" he yelled at Hotaru, who was smirking at him.

"You and Mikan-chan looked really cute. Although your great confession of your undying love for her was a bit late." Hotaru said to him, enjoying the effect that it was creating. Ruka's face immediately turned beet red.

"No way…you _videotaped _it?!" Ruka said weakly.

"We'll talk about the price later. Anyway, what are you going to do about her?" Hotaru said, gesturing at Mikan, whose arms were still wrapped around Ruka.

"I really don't know. She won't wake up…or let go, either." Ruka said. "You should bring her to her dorm."

"Why should I do it?" Hotaru said primly.

"How do you think it would look if people saw me carrying her to her room?" he protested. "Just use one of your inventions, please? You're already going to humiliate me with that video, so can't you even spare me that?"

"Alright then. But still, you should tell her, you know." she told him.

"But…I can't." His bangs were covering his face again.

"Why not? Natsume's smiling now. Why shouldn't you?"

Hotaru took out her remote control and used it to call out the same vehicle she had used when she, Mikan, and Yuu were in the Northern Woods back when Mikan was still a new student. (A/N sorry, I can't remember what it was called…)

"Carry Mikan-chan and put her in here." Hotaru ordered. She was already riding it.

Ruka hurriedly did as she said and carried Mikan bridal style to the vehicle.

"Thanks. Bye." Hotaru drove off with Mikan still snoring and left Ruka there.

"Hey, Imai-san! Can't I at least get a ride?!" Ruka yelled.

"No." Hotaru said coldheartedly.

_No matter what happens, Imai-san will always stay the same…always…_Ruka thought. He shook his head and started walking back to his dorm.

Hotaru drove until they had reached the dorm building. Then she used her remote control to get the flying duck that she used to get around the school. She put Mikan on it and used her remote control to make it carry Mikan to her room. Then she turned it over and it dumped Mikan on the bed.

Mikan didn't react at all. She was sleeping so soundly that she didn't even move when the duck dropped her onto her bed.

_It's so typical of that dummy, _Hotaru thought. Then she went to her lab with the duck flying overhead.

Meanwhile, Ruka couldn't sleep. He headed for the roof where he and Natsume always spent time talking. But when he climbed up, someone was already there.

"Oh, Natsume-kun." Ruka smiled. "You're here, too? Guess you couldn't get any sleep either."

"Nope. I was thinking." Natsume answered. He lay back down on the roof and watched the stars. "I was worried about Mikan-chan. She was acting really weird. Don't you think?"

He looked sideways at Ruka. But Ruka's face was hidden in the shadows.

"Yeah, I noticed." Ruka said tonelessly.

"Hey, is there something wrong? You're beginning to sound like Imai-san." Natsume said.

"I really…don't know." Ruka said the last words in a voice that was nearly a whisper. He lay down as well and looked out at the sky.

"You can tell me, you know. I am your best friend." Natsume said.

"But I can't tell you if I don't know, right?" Ruka said quietly. "Sorry. I'll tell you when I do. Right now, I'm really confused. But I _can_ tell you what it's about."

"Well, what is it then?" Natsume asked.

"It's about…Mikan-chan."

Natsume smirked. "I figured."

"W-what?! B-but was I _that _obvious?" Ruka panicked.

"I know you better than anyone else. Of course it was obvious to me."

Ruka sighed. "I guess…anyway, you already know that I, well, you know."

"What about it?" Natsume grunted.

"Even though I, you know, like her, I've been feeling like…maybe, it just isn't the right way to describe the way I feel for her. It's like she's a sister to me." Ruka said.

This got Natsume's attention right away. He sat up really fast.

"Huh?"

"I mean it…I know it's weird but it's just how I feel."

"Well, since you told me that…there's something that I've never told anyone."

"What is it?"

"It's really weird too…I think…I like Mikan in a different way than…as my sister."

Ruka suddenly sat up.

"What?! But how could that be?"

"I know…but for some reason…I can't seem to get the idea that we heard Narumi and Jinno wrong out of my head."

They were silent for a while. But both of them were thinking the same thing…

The possibility that Mikan might not even be related to Natsume.

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**A/N: **I did tell you that I would try to fix it up right? So there you go! Guess you readers have a pretty good idea of what's coming next. Haha! Hope you enjoyed the new chapter! I assure you you'll enjoy the next one a lot! Thanks very much to **zephyrlight, nArUe008, anime addict8594, glenda23, NICC12 (thank you!!!!), Soul of the Rain, mysakura011 **and **kiuna'yukina** for your reviews! They're greatly appreciated! Hope the reviews keep coming!

**akaiihana**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: **Sorry, in the last chapter Natsume was kinda OOC (thanks to **mysakura11** to pointing this out ;) ) it's because he really needed to let off some steam because he was going to explode if he didn't tell someone. I know it wasn't really in his character, but…

Oh yes, and I'll be introducing two new characters in this story, but only one of them's going to come out now. The other one will be in the next chapter.

And there'll be some fluff in this chapter between Hotaru and Ruka. That's dedicated to my readers who have been asking for some RukaRu in my fic. There you go!

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Disclaimer: I don't own anything of Gakuen Alice/Alice Academy. It is owned by the great manga-ka Higuchi Tachibana.

**Mismatch, Chapter Seven**

Ruka got up and said "I think I'll go to bed. Night, Natsume-kun. And…thanks for telling me that. It really means a lot to know that you trust me.

"Don't be stupid. You are my best friend." Natsume grunted. "Night. I'll go down in a while."

"All right." Ruka climbed back down to his window. He threw himself down on his bed.

_Probably, our feelings for Mikan are just that way because we've been feeling confused with what's been going on recently. I'm sure that things will clear up eventually…I hope, _Ruka thought to himself. He shook his head in an attempt to clear his mind of the thoughts that kept him awake. He closed his eyes and went to sleep.

Suddenly he awoke to find himself in a dark room. He was tightly bound to a chair and gagged with a piece of material.

_Where am I? What am I doing here? _He thought wildly while struggling to get himself untied, but to no avail. The ropes held him securely. The door banged open, and a hooded man entered the room.

"There's no use doing that." he said in a strangely familiar voice to Ruka, who was still futilely struggling against the rope. "And you can't use your Alice to call your little animal friends to help you either. Someone here's got a Barrier Alice, and he'll know when you're using it."

Ruka stopped struggling and tried to use his Alice. As the hooded man had said, a Barrier Alice was preventing him from using it.

"Hardheaded, aren't you?" the man snickered. "You better not try anything funny, kid, or else this little girl get hurt."

As he spoke, two more hooded men opened the door and entered the room, dragging a little girl with them. Raven-colored hair obscured her face, but he could see enough of her face to see that she was also gagged, and her hands were tied behind her.

Ruka looked at her curiously. She seemed very familiar to him, but he couldn't seem to remember who he was. The hooded man who had been in the room with him the whole time tried to see her face by pushing her chin up with his hand. She resisted, so he forced it upward.

"Hmph. You've got a pretty face there. Let's dirty it up a bit, shall we?"

She was gagged, so she couldn't say anything, but Ruka heard her try to protest, but she couldn't be understood through the gag.

"Stupid girl." The man slapped her hard on the cheek. She fell to the floor. She tried to sit up against the wall. Ruka looked at her, because he could see her face clearly now.

Her eyes were dark, just like her hair. They were filled with tears, but it looked like she was the kind of person who wouldn't stand for anything. Ruka felt a sudden jolt. There was a blinding flash of light, and he lost consciousness.

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Ruka sat up suddenly in his bed in a cold sweat. He was panting, as though he had run a long way. He wiped his face, and noticed that tears were mingling with the sweat dripping down his face.

_That couldn't have been real…could it? _Ruka thought to himself. He decided he would take a shower first. Afterwards, he went outside for a walk. He didn't think that he'd be sleeping again that night, not after that dream.

He sat down on a bench under a cherry blossom tree. He still felt sleepy, so he rubbed his eyes to try to wake himself up.

**Click. Flash.**

"Ahhh!" Ruka yelled.

"Got you." Hotaru smirked at him. She had been sitting on a bench beside his, but he had been so preoccupied with his thoughts that he hadn't noticed at all.

"Imai-san, don't do that!" Ruka yelled at the still smirking Hotaru.

"This'll make good blackmail. I can pass it off as a photo of you crying, then I'll sell it to those fan club girls of yours."

"Are you serious? I didn't do anything…"

"Why are you here, anyway? Don't tell me you were _really_ crying back there." Hotaru said, ignoring his protests.

Ruka flushed. "Of course I wasn't!"

"Then why are you still awake at this hour of the night?"

Ruka fell silent. Hotaru looked at him and saw that his bangs were covering his face, and that his hands were shaking. He balled them into fists in an effort to stop them, but failed to do so.

"I…I…I had a nighmare, okay?" Ruka sighed, preparing himself for the ridicule, though silent, would still be nevertheless derision from the violet-eyed girl beside him.

"About what?"

Ruka started. He had been so sure that Hotaru would think that he was a loser, a baby who still cried at night for his mommy because he had had a bad dream. Just then, he suddenly thought of something. He related his dream to Hotaru, then told her about his idea.

"Imai-san, do you think she's the girl we have to rescue? On that mission task that Narumi-sensei assigned us?"

Hotaru looked surprised. "it could be, though it sounds a bit far-fetched. Don't get me wrong," she said, on seeing the look on Ruka's face, "you just can't be too sure. It could have just been a dream, nothing more."

He sighed. "Yes, I know, but for some reason, it seemed so real. And that girl…she looked familiar."

"You must have seen her before, only you don't remember."

"But you believe me, don't you, Imai-san?"

"About you seeing that girl before, yes. But I'm not so sure about your theory that she's the one we're supposed to rescue. Like I said, it could have just been that, a dream."

Ruka opened his mouth to argue, but he couldn't think of anything to say that would change Hotaru's mind. He understood perfectly well why she was so skeptical. He just couldn't get the girl n his dream out of his thoughts.

"Aren't you going to sleep yet?" Ruka asked, to change the subject.

"Maybe I will. I think I'll go to my room, though I probably won't fall asleep soon. Good night." She stood up to leave.

"Wait."

She looked back at him. "What is it?"

"Please don't tell anyone about it."

"All right."

"Good night, Imai-san. And…thanks."

"You're welcome." She walked away.

Ruka stood up as well.

_I might as well get some sleep too…_

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**A/N: **Sorry for the long wait! There's absolutely no privacy here…so I write them in my notebook, and type it when I'm home alone! Anyway, hope you enjoyed it! Thanks to **nicc12, kiuna'yukina, **and **mysakura011 **for the reviews! Not many came, but I still love writing! Hope more come next time!

**akaiihana**


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Very sorry for the long wait, people. Have I mentioned how complicated my life has become lately? Well, and the usual complaint of lack of privacy. Anyway…this won't be very long.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything of Gakuen Alice/Alice Academy. It is owned by the great manga-ka Higuchi Tachibana.

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**Mismatch, Chapter Eight**

Mikan was walking along a dark corridor. A door she hadn't seen opened and a person she didn't know came out of it. He grabbed Mikan by the arm and covered her mouth, and dragged her into the room with him.

"If you scream, you'll be in big trouble, little girl." he menacingly said. He stuffed a piece of cloth into her mouth. Mikan looked at him with scared eyes as he tied her hands and feet tightly with a long piece of rope. But she might as well have not looked at all for what she saw. His face was covered by his long hair, and he was dressed all in black.

"Stupid brat. You'll have company wile you're here." he smirked, and a man in black opened the door, as though his saying that had been some kind of cue. He pushed a boy into the room, and he fell into the room onto the floor right beside Mikan.

"How could they be so mean? We're only kids!" Mikan thought in horror.

One of the men took a rope and tied the boy up beside Mikan, and gagged him. His eyes were shut tight and his breathing was uneven and ragged. The two men left the room and locked the door behind them.

Mikan looked at the boy, who still looked as though he was having a hard time breathing. He was clearly in pain, but he didn't seem to have any injuries on the outside.

_He looks just like Natsume that time when he overused his fire Alice, _she thought to herself. _Maybe he has the same type of Alice?_

He opened his eyes. Mikan stared at him and saw that his eyes were purplish-blue. His hair was the same color as Mikan's, light brown. She was startled and so was he. Right at that moment, both of them felt as though a ray of light had pierced their minds, and they suddenly understood something that had been previously unknown to them. But one thing stood out clearly the most.

_We…we look…just like…each other!_

Just then, Mikan woke with a start. All her bedclothes were on the floor, and her bed was rumpled. Evidently, she had been tossing and turning the whole time that she was asleep.

She put a hand to her forehead, suddenly remembering the strange dream she had just had.

_If it was even a dream,_ she thought wryly.

But for some strange reason, she couldn't remember all of it. She could only remember the strange men in her dream who had kidnapped her. And that there had been someone else… _Who was that person_? She wondered. _How come I can't remember?_

_Maybe…you weren't meant to remember._

Mikan gasped and looked around. She had heard a distinct voice, but there was no one in the room. She ran to the door and pushed it open, but there was no one outside. But she was sure of it – there had been someone talking. But who?

_Great. Now this? What next? _Mikan sighed exasperatedly. She threw herself down on the bed and buried her face in the pillow.

Just then Mikan felt something hard pressing against her chest. She sat up and took a necklace out of her nightgown.

"Huh? I wasn't wearing this when I went to sleep. I've never even seen this before!" she said to no one in particular. She began to examine the necklace more closely.

It was a silver chain, very fine and intricately linked. There was a little round pendant too, with a strange symbol etched into the surface.

Suddenly, someone banged the door to her room open, startling Mikan. She turned around. It was Hotaru, panting. She had run the whole way from her lab to Mikan's room.

"Mikan…take off the necklace!"

Mikan was astonished. Hotaru's voice was angry, and there was a frown on her face. Hotaru, who usually had a deadpan face and an I-care-not voice, angry…at her! It was almost too much to believe. So much that her words didn't register in Mikan's mind immediately.

"Ho-hotaru-chan? Are you okay?"

"Mikan, take it off now!" The force of Hotaru's voice was very obvious.

Just then, the necklace's odd mark started glowing a bright bloody red.

"Oh no." Hotaru gritted her teeth and ran to Mikan. She desperately started tugging the necklace off Mikan, but its clasp held tight.

"Mikan, Mikan! Take it off!"

But it was too late. The light that brightened Mikan's eyes was gone, leaving a blank look in them. The pendant detached itself from the chain, then grew and turned into a door. Hotaru was shaking from fear by now. She had no idea what to do. Her feet were frozen to the floor. Her mind was telling her to move, to break the pendant, anything, but her body just wouldn't obey.

Mikan stepped towards the door. Her face was expressionless. Her hand stretched out to take hold of the door's knob.

**"Mikan, stop!"**

For a moment, Mikan did. Her hand dropped down to her side, and she turned to face Hotaru. This most of all was what frightened Hotaru. Mikan's face, in the space of a few seconds, had turned from the happy Mikan to something evil and ugly. Hotaru snapped from the fear, and screamed as loudly as her lungs would let her, awakening everyone in the dorm.

Mikan turned back toward the door, and opened it. From what Hotaru could see, there was nothing inside but pitch-black space. Mikan stepped inside slowly, and the door shut behind her. Then the door vanished into thin air.

Hotaru collapsed on the floor. Her mind was in turmoil over what she had just seen.

That was how the rest of the school found her, only a few minutes later.

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**A/N: **I hope you liked the latest chapter, even if it was shorter! Thanks very much to **kiuna'yukina, Soul of the Rain, zephyrlight, mysakura11, nArUe008, glenda23, anamicah **(Dear cousin! Harhar) **nicc12, 520anime** and the other people I wasn't able to acknowledge because their reviews were anonymous :( and the ones who read my fic but didn't leave a review! Please do next time though. Happy reading!

**akaiihana**


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: I'm so sorry! I've been sick, and I haven't had any time to update until now! And besides, you know the usual blah, no privacy at home, studying, yadda yadda yadda. Anyway, on to the story! And also, I've changed my pen name from locked-away rainbow to akaiihana. :)

Oh, by the way, have you people reading this noticed that my story isn't anything like what it says on my summary? That'll come later, I promise. Actually, it's already starting!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything of Gakuen Alice/Alice Academy. It is owned by the great manga-ka Higuchi Tachibana.

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**Mismatch, Chapter Nine**

"Ahhhhh!"

Hotaru suddenly sat up in bed. _This isn't my room! Where am I? _she thought. Suddenly all the events that had just happened came back to her in a rush.

"What am I going to do? This is all my fault for not stopping her. And I'm the only one who knows what really happened." She sighed. For once, cool, calm and collected Hotaru was the exact opposite of what she usually was like. And she had absolutely no idea what to do.

She put a hand to her head. It was aching badly. _I must be in the infirmary. What am I doing here anyway?_ _I wonder who brought me here. Oh no. _She suddenly thought. _I must have passed out! Then I probably had the whole dorm in a panic. How humiliating._

_**…her hand dropped down to her side, and she turned to face Hotaru. This most of all was what frightened Hotaru. Mikan's face, in the space of a few seconds, had turned from the happy Mikan to something evil and ugly. Hotaru snapped from the fear, and screamed as loudly as her lungs would let her, awakening everyone in the dorm.**_

_**Mikan turned back toward the door, and opened it. From what Hotaru could see, there was nothing inside but pitch-black space. Mikan stepped inside slowly, and the door shut behind her. Then the door vanished into thin air.**_

Suddenly the door to the infirmary opened, cutting into Hotaru's reverie. Ruka and Natsume entered, looking rather worried. Just then, Ruka caught Hotaru's eye.

"Imai-san!"

_What wonderful timing for these two to come, _Hotaru thought sarcastically.

This time it was Natsume who spoke. "Ruka says you saw something weird."

Hotaru was not pleased by this. It wasn't any of their business anyway. She stood up from the bed to face Natsume. "What would you care about what happened?" Her temper was rising. "And you," she faced Ruka, "what right do you have to say things like that?"

Ruka reddened. "I just remembered…the other night when I couldn't sleep. I woke up from a really strange dream. Remember?"

"I could never forget that." Hotaru said derisively. She turned to the wall ,refusing to look at Ruka.

"I just thought of something," Ruka said, ignoring Hotaru's tone. "I asked Yura-san (A/N: Yura Otonashi has a Divination Alice) about it. She said that my dream had really happened and that it coincided with someone else's dream."

Hotaru suddenly turned around. "What are you saying?" she asked suspiciously.

Ruka said, "Maybe it had something to do with Mikan-san's disappearance."

"How would you know? You weren't even there! And even if you were, you'd realize that it had absolutely nothing to do with your dream!" Hotaru was nearly in tears from combined frustration and shock. She was practically screaming.

Ruka was at a loss for words. This was a Hotaru that he had never seen before. Then again, who had?

Luckily, Natsume stepped forward. "Imai-san, relax. We're just trying to help." Even though he didn't show it, Natsume was worrying about Mikan too. He was sure that Hotaru could help them find her. After all, she was the only one who knew what had happened.

Hotaru couldn't say anything. For some reason, her body wasn't moving the way it usually did. Her mind would tell her body to do something, but it somehow got lost along the way and never made it to the part of her body she was trying to move.

"You haven't told anyone about this, have you?" Natsume asked her quietly.

Silently she shook her head. She was suddenly feeling a bit dizzy. She sat back down onto the bed.

"We should get out of here before anyone else finds out. Then the teachers will start interfering, but they won't actually be doing anything." Ruka said.

Hotaru looked surprised. "It isn't like you to say things like that."

"I guess…I'm just as worried as you two are." he said quietly.

"Well, if we are going to get out of here, how will we do that without being seen? And what will we do once we're out?" Hotaru asked.

"Oh, don't worry about that. I've done it plenty of times before. You do actually learn something when the school uses you for their own purposes. You learn to be quiet, or else you die. Which could be pretty much what could happen to us." Natsume remarked.

_Or it could happen to Mikan_, each one of them added silently.

Just then, the infirmary door opened for the second time. This time, it was Narumi who entered, and he looked like he was in a big hurry. He shut the door quietly behind him and immediately went to the three people beside the bed. For some reason, he didn't seem the least surprised to see Natsume and Ruka there.

"I thought you might be here," Narumi said breathlessly. "Listen closely. The three of you have to work together to find out what happened to Mikan and get her back. Or else, that rescue mission of yours will fail."

"You stupid teacher. How could we possibly know what happened to her?" Natsume said angrily.

"You could. Because Hotaru knows well what happened. Don't you, Hotaru?" he turned to address Hotaru. Her face was totally blank.

"Imai-san? Do you really know what happened?" Ruka asked tentatively.

"Of course I know. But how could you know that?" she said to Narumi.

Suddenly there was loud banging on the door. Narumi quickly turned to face them again. "You have to get out of here. If they catch you, there'll be no telling what'll happen to Mikan. I'll cover for you."

"But how exactly are we going to get out of here?!"

"We'll have to figure something out."

"Are you nuts?! They're already outside!"

"I know!" Ruka exclaimed. He ran to the window. A few seconds later the floor of the room started to shake.

"Well, get on, you guys!" he yelled as he stepped out of the window.

"Ruka, are you crazy? We're on the fourth floor!" Natsume shouted.

"Oh, that's okay. I think Ruka called the giant chick." Narumi remarked. "You should leave now. I'll make your excuses."

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A/N: So, did you enjoy it? Thanks to my reviewers, **Ridley Silverlake** (I'm touched you left a review! XD ), **Soul of the Rain** (I should be thanking you), **glenda23, SapphireRhythm** (lol!) **xxxDazzlesxxx**, and **sakura4594!** Hope I didn't leave anyone out! Thanks for your reviews, people :) happy reading!


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Hmph. I've been feeling really depressed lately. But the inspiration keeps coming anyway. I hate myself! I love writing because it's the only way to release some emotions.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything of Gakuen Alice/Alice Academy. It is owned by the great manga-ka Higuchi Tachibana.

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**Mismatch, Chapter Ten**

Natsume stepped out of the window as well and the two boys helped Hotaru get on the chick. She was still feeling strange after everything that had just happened.

"So where exactly does Narumi want us to go?" Natsume asked them both.

"Um, I really don't know." Ruka answered tentatively, and they both turned to face Hotaru.

She sighed. "And why would you expect me to know where? I don't even know what's happening."

"You could at least have a clue to what we're supposed to do now. Narumi said you would."

"Tell us what happened, Imai-san. Please." Ruka said. He then bent down and started talking to the giant chick to take them somewhere away from the Academy.

Hotaru gave up and told them about everything that had happened when she was with Mikan. When she had finished, she mentioned to them, "But I had no idea why I wanted Mikan to take off the necklace so badly. It was like…I had a premonition about it."

Ruka was thoughtfully looking out at the distance. "So now, I guess Narumi wants us to go rescue Mikan-san."

"I guess." Hotaru said.

"Natsume, what do you think?" Ruka asked him

Natsume had not yet spoken until now. "Imai-san, did the symbol on the necklace look like a letter? Or a rune? If it was…" he broke off in low muttering to himself.

"Come to think of it, it did. It looked a bit like a letter H. But it was hard to tell because it was really complicated-looking." Hotaru answered uncertainly. "Why?"

"It's strangely familiar to me, like I've seen it before. But why, though?" Natsume said, puzzled.

"Everything about this is so mystifying. In the first place, how are we supposed to find Mikan?" Hotaru thought worriedly.

"What?" the other two looked at her.

"Oh. Did I say that out loud?" Hotaru said. "I just think that we should have at least _something_ we can use to look for her. Natsume, where have you seen that symbol before?"

"I saw it once, when I was young. Sometime before, my neighbors and I were wandering around, exploring, then we reached a house with no one inside. It was really old, I remember. Then we went inside and poked around, and I saw a symbol there, something like the one you described. It's odd, but I've never forgotten it."

Ruka stared at Natsume. He had never heard him tell someone else besides him about what it had been like when he was younger, back in the days before he entered Alice Academy. It was a mark of how much Natsume was worried about Mikan. Or was it something else?

"Do you have a pen?" Hotaru took out a pen and some paper out of her pocket.

"Yeah, I do. Why?" Natsume asked.

"Draw what you can remember of the symbol you saw. I'll draw it too, and we'll see whether the drawings match. Ruka, you make sure that no one can hear us." Hotaru handed him a piece of paper, and they started drawing busily. Ruka tried to get the chick to walk less loudly and more carefully so that no one could hear them, and also so that Hotaru's and Natsume's hands wouldn't shake too much.

After a few minutes, in which Ruka got the chick to move quietly (it was defying reason, but he did) the other two completed their drawings. They silently looked at one another and nodded, and they held up their papers in such a way so that Ruka would also be able to see it.

There was a moment of silence. Their drawings were more or less the same, considering that it had been several years since Natsume had last seen the strange sign.

"Now that we know that you two saw the same thing, what do we do now?" Ruka asked quietly.

"I think we should go to the place where you saw this." Hotaru said to Natsume. "Probably there'll be some clue to what this is and hopefully where Mikan is."

"She's right. But how are we going to get there without being noticed? We're riding on a giant chick, if you've forgotten." Natsume said sarcastically.

"I think you've forgotten we've got Alices, and we're perfectly free to use them. At least, in mine and Ruka's case." Hotaru said blandly.

Without further delay, she took out some strange objects from her pocket and started to invent. Ruka, in the meantime, needed to tell the chick where to go.

"Natsume, could you tell me where we're supposed to go?"

"Alright."

Ruka knew how painful this was for Natsume. He was returning to his old home and rescuing someone who was very important to him. He admired Natsume for being strong.

"Okay, so where do we go now?"

"Head to the other side of this river."

"I've finished." Hotaru interrupted suddenly. "Invention number 088, the Invisible Cloak. Not only does it keep us from being seen, it is also soundproof, ensuring that no one will hear that huge chick stomping around all over the place."

Ruka looked affronted at this last remark. "Imai-san! You'll hurt the chick's feelings!"

"That doesn't matter right now." Hotaru said emotionlessly. "Tell it to hurry up before it's too late for us…and for Mikan."

As she expected, it got Ruka to start moving. Meanwhile, Hotaru used her new invention to disguise the chick.

"This is it." Natsume suddenly said.

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A/N: Finally done. Hope more reviews come next time. Thanks to **natsumeluvr **and** glenda23. **If people stop reviewing I'm going to delete this story.

akaiihana


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: I'm back! After a billion years, I've updated XD sorry for the long wait, everyone!

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**Mismatch, Chapter 11**

They had finally arrived – at Natsume's hometown, the place where he had been born. They'd rebuilt it, although the havoc he'd wreaked on it as a child could still be seen. The last time Natsume had seen it, it had been a sea of fire.

Ruka looked worriedly at Natsume. He didn't know how Natsume would feel about coming back to his birth place after so long.

As it was, Natsume didn't know what to feel. Homesickness, regret – not really. He didn't feel like there was anything to feel. Anyway, there were more pressing matters at hand. Now that they were there, what were they supposed to do?

He voiced this thought, and they all fell silent. They didn't know what to do next.

"Maybe we should try to look around for the symbol that Natsume said he saw before." Ruka said uncertainly.

"We might as well, since there's nothing else we can do right now. Ruka, tell this chick to stay here and keep quiet. My invention's effective, but it will be hard to explain crushed trees and cars." Hotaru said in a detached voice, as always.

Natsume felt an imperative desire to go to his old home. It wasn't nostalgia – he didn't feel nostalgic for anything. He just needed to go there. He didn't know why, but he did.

"I know where we could start," he said quietly, and told them of his idea. Hotaru scoffed, but reluctantly agreed. He was the only one of them who knew where to go, after all.

They walked quietly along the dark alleyways, trying not to attract attention to themselves. Luckily, it was so late in the evening, nearly midnight, that there weren't many people around.

Although Natsume hadn't been there for so long, he remembered the way to his old home perfectly, as though he'd just been there yesterday instead of years ago. It felt strange still knowing his old town, and it had barely changed, but he knew that his home would be an abandoned ruin by now. He didn't have any family anymore, except Mikan – that is, if she really was his sister.

He'd wondered, years after burning the village – not on purpose of course – why he'd spared his house. As a child, he had no control over his Alice, but he had managed to burn everything _except_ his house. Quite interesting.

He saw his former house at the end of the alleyway, and they walked to it together. He stared at it for a while. It was so different from the way he remembered it. It was in ruins, like he expected, but the thing that struck him most of all was that it didn't seem like home anymore. It was just a regular house. Anyone could have lived in it.

Stranger still was that he didn't feel homesick for it. It was like he was just resigned to it. There was nothing he could do about it or change now, so he just accepted it.

"Stop looking at me like that, Ruka, I'm fine."

He wasn't looking at Ruka, but he knew that Ruka was looking at him with that expression of combined worry and anxiety in his eyes. He didn't want him to look at him like that. It made him feel like he was being pitied, and he didn't need that. He wasn't pitiful. He knew Ruka cared, but he didn't need unnecessary concern.

Ruka flushed and looked away. He should have known Natsume would say that. He was used to it, though. He knew Natsume wasn't being rude.

The house was overgrown with grass and weeds, and the windows were broken. The paint was chipped off at most places. The house looked like it hadn't been occupied for at least a decade. No one had lived it in since Natsume and his mother had.

Natsume wondered where his mother was now. But the thought left his mind – he couldn't stop thinking about Mikan.

"Come on," he whispered quietly to the others, and he opened the door and they entered the house.

It was dark and gloomy, with a musty smell. What was left of the furniture and everything else left in the house was covered with a thick layer of dust.

"Invention number 011, The Rechargeable Flashlight. It doesn't need batteries, it runs on perpetual energy, so we can use it no matter how long we need to," Hotaru said suddenly, pulling out a strange-looking flashlight out of nowhere and turning it on.

Its strong yellow beam made weird shadows on the walls as it shone on the different objects it hit. Natsume took it from her and began poking around what seemed to the other two to be random places on the walls.

"I highly doubt you're going to find anything there." Hotaru remarked coldly.

"Shut up," he hissed. He was feeling around for something that neither of the other two could see. Suddenly his eyes lit up with recognition, but Ruka and Hotaru had no idea what he had found.

Natsume pounded hard on a part of the wall and it gave way, but not as though it had broken. It simply lowered to the floor, revealing a dark passageway.

"Here we are. I hoped this would still be here."

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A/N: Sorry it's so short! Hoped you enjoyed it even if it was so short XD I'm still obsessed with Princess Tutu so I'm focused on my PT fic right now, but no worries I'm still going to keep updating this! It's exam week so I really should be studying now… I'll update soon don't worry V review!! throws cookies to readers

akaiihana


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